True Beauty
by Lady Snowblossom
Summary: Duo is very ill, and the others are worried. I suck at summaries.
1. Default Chapter

Title: True Beauty, part one  
  
Author: Lady Snowblossom  
  
Pairings: 1+4, 3+5, various pairings eventually  
  
Rating: PG  
  
Category: Drama  
  
Warnings: yaoi, citrus? lime?, (I am not good at thus) angst.  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own the boys, wish I did. Don't sue, no money.  
  
Archive: Yes, just ask. Email me at mlayfield@yahoo.com  
  
Notes: Duo is a very sick boy and the others are very worried about him. Wufei has a brainstorm that may save him. Feedback is welcome.  
  
The stars were beautiful that night, but the four young men seated on either side of a long white bed had no eyes for celestial displays, their attention was centered on the wan longhaired figure that writhed on the mattress before them.  
  
"Heero! Wufei! Help me! Quatre! Make it stop! Please, oh god! Trowa!" the hoarse voice rose in an impassioned shriek, and then quieted to a pitiful murmur. A murmur they knew wouldn't last. All too soon, Duo would be screaming again.  
  
"Oh, Allah! Please help him!" Quatre's heartbroken prayer tore from his lips as he leaned against Heero and wept. Heero clutched his lover to his chest, while his own tears slipped silently down his cheeks. Never had the Perfect Soldier felt so helpless, as he did now.  
  
Trowa and Wufei sat holding hands and grieved. If Duo's fever didn't break soon, they were going to lose him. Nothing Sally had tried on him was working; the fever and Duo's delirium just kept getting worse.  
  
Duo shuddered as a new wave of pain surged hot and sharp through him. As he thrashed about, he suddenly sank his teeth into his own arm and bit down - hard.  
  
Bright crimson blood welled up and ran down his elbow. Wufei leapt forward and forcibly pried Shinigami's jaws open. Heero jumped up and ran for the medical kit. Trowa and Quatre threw themselves on Duo and held him down.  
  
"Duo! Duo!" Wufei cried, as he clamped a hand over the wound trying to stem the flow of blood. Heero raced back to the bed, kit in hand. Wordlessly, he opened it and handed Wufei a cleansing pad to wash the wound with. Calloused fingers more suited to the hilt of a sword, and then a nursing job gently skimmed the injury, cleaning away all traces of red, before wrapping it in a bandage.  
  
"All right, let him go, now." Heero said, softly to Trowa and Q. The two slowly lifted themselves up, ready in an instant to throw themselves on Duo again, if it were needed. Duo lay still and they relaxed. Heero closed the kit and set it on the floor at his feet. Quietly the four resumed their vigil.  
  
Abruptly, Wufei surged to his feet. He skirted the bed and headed out the door. Behind him startled voices called.  
  
"Wufei?"  
  
"Love?"  
  
"Dragon?"  
  
Ignoring the calls, Wufei strode purposely out in search of some servants. He had an idea, if it worked then Duo would live, if it didn't . . .then unless the Ancestors blessed them with a miracle, Duo would die; and that was something Wufei couldn't bear thinking about.  
  
Rashid looked up from his coffee, as the Chinese boy entered the kitchen. The big man was surprised to see him, for the last few days, they hadn't even been able to get the four to leave Duo long enough to sleep in their beds. Instead, they slept in sleeping bags on the floor by the bed.  
  
"How is he?"  
  
"Ice." Wufei demanded, before adding, "No better."  
  
"Ice?" Rashid queried, raising his eyebrows. What did he want with ice?  
  
"When I was a child on L5, the healer in the temple, where I was raised once lowered a high fever with an ice bath."  
  
Impatiently, Wufei stomped towards the fridge, only to have Rashid intercept him. Rashid gripped Wufei's lower arm in a viselike grip. Onyx eyes looked down at the huge hand, then up into shrewd brown eyes.  
  
"So, you think that by giving Duo an ice bath, you can save him." It wasn't a question. It was a statement.  
  
"What have we got to lose? Sally can't help him, and the gods are ignoring us, so we have to try something." Despair and resolve colored Wufei's words. Rashid released his grip, a thoughtful expression on his face.  
  
"I'll send Abdul for some blocks of ice. We can crush them on the back portico and haul the chips up in buckets to the master bath: short of the swimming pool, its' the largest body of water in the house. Leave everything to me, little master." Rashid left to begin issuing his orders.  
  
Wufei watched the big man go, then turned to rejoin his companions. The halls seemed to stretch for miles, as he hurried along, his route took him past the music room. Something caught his eye, as he walked past, and he went back to see what it was. Lying half on and half off the couch was Duo's jacket.  
  
The piece of fabric drew Wufei like a lodestone; trembling hands lifted the couple of yards of cloth from its resting place. The Chinese boy stroked the rough cloth and lifted it to his face and drew in a deep breath of Shinigami's scent and essence: that heady blend of musk, herbs, citrus, sweat and the underlying bitterness of smoke so uniquely Duo.  
  
"Duo," Wu moaned, dropping to the couch. "Oh, Ancestors, please don't take him from us. We've lost some much all ready! Don't take our bright light!" Shenlong pleaded from his soul, as he crushed the jacket to him. For several minutes, Wufei could do nothing but weep bitter hot tears, as he mourned for his slowly dying loved one.  
  
Finally, he regained control of himself. Now was not the time to fall apart. Now was the time to fight for the life he and the others prized so highly. Iron filled Wufei's soul as he wiped the last of his tears from his cheeks. Letting the coat fall from his fingers, he issued forth to join the battle.  
  
Muffled sounds were emerging from Duo's sick room, when 'Fei reached it. Worried, Wu pushed opened the door, and walked into a nightmare. Quatre was sitting on the floor, buried so deep in Heero's arms, all he could see was a few strands of gold and a piece of pink shirt. Heero's face was a horrible blend of grief and condemnation. Trowa was crammed into a corner, his face in his knees. And from the bed were coming the most heart-rending pleas and soul blasting curses he was ever to hear.  
  
"Sick . . . Somebody . . . Hold me . . .No one cares . . .Everyone hates me . . .No one wants me . . .I hope they all rot in Hell! They love each other . . .Can't they love me? Leave 'em . . . I'll do. Oz . . .Wipe out . . .serve 'em right. No . . .No . . . Didn't mean it. I love you, Hee-chan. Trowa - koi, Q-chan, Wu-kun,"  
  
Stunned, Wufei sank to the floor. "Why didn't you tell us?" He whispered. 


	2. part two

Title: True Beauty, part two  
  
Author: Lady Snowblossom  
  
Pairings: 1+4, 3+5, various pairings eventually  
  
Rating: PG  
  
Category: Drama  
  
Warnings: Yaoi, Citrus, angst  
  
Archive: Yes, just ask. Email me at mlayfield@yahoo.com  
  
Notes: The fight for Duo's life continues. Feedback welcome  
  
As Duo's words slowly died away and he finally fell into a fitful sleep. Wufei rubbed furiously at his eyes, brushing away the tears that pooled there. He didn't have time for this, damn it!  
  
"'Fei." Trowa lifted his head from his knees and looked bleary eyed at his lover; the tall European was devastated by Duo's angry accusations and fervent apologies. "Where did you go?"  
  
"Went to see Rashid." the Chinese replied, as he got shakily to his feet. He went to the bed and covered Duo with a blanket. The cover only served to accentuate how thin Duo had gotten.  
  
"Why?" Heero said, as he set Quatre up and kissed away his tears. Briefly the Japanese smiled, as he was rewarded with a tiny curl of lip from the smaller boy.  
  
"Because I think I know of a way to save Duo."  
  
They all gaped at him. Silence stretched out like a rubber band, until Heero growled.  
  
"Chang, if you're joking, it's a piss poor one, and if you're telling us the truth, why the hell didn't you say something sooner?" A furious fire burned in the sapphire depths of Heero's eyes, as Wufei walked over to face the others. Quatre and Trowa's expressions were ones of hurt and bewilderment.  
  
"Because I just remembered, Yuy!" Wufei responded hotly, glaring back at the disheveled Japanese. Heero snarled and took a step forward; Quatre quickly interposed his body between the two. He placed a restraining hand on his lover's chest, Heero reluctantly subsided, but his eyes promised dire things for Wufei's silence.  
  
Wu snorted and crossed his arms across his chest. "Do you want to hear my idea, or not?" he demanded.  
  
Trowa quietly stepped to his side, and wrapped his arms around 'Fei's waist and nuzzled the side of his face. "We're listening." He glared at Heero with one eye. Heero glared right back.  
  
Wufei ignored the arms holding him, and sighed, "I told Rashid about how a healer back on L5 lowered a high fever with an ice bath. We have to put Duo in the master bath and pack him in ice. Rashid is willing to give it a try and has sent for some ice blocks. When the ice arrives, he'll have it crushed and then we can use it on Duo."  
  
Heero turned Shenlong's words over in his mind. He wasn't sure he liked the idea, but time was running out, and he was willing to try anything to save Shinigami. He hated the feeling of helplessness and guilt that had engulfed him, ever since Duo had been stabbed during a fight between two patrons in a bar, where they had gone to meet an informant.  
  
Involuntarily, the film frames of that day ran through his mind.  
  
"Come on, Duo! We can drop in at the bookstore, after we get the information we came to get." Heero grabbed his friend's hand and dragged the braided wonder away from the window display.  
  
"But, Heero! They've got original copies of The Mithgar Series' back there! Do you know how hard it is to find those!" Duo wailed, as he was relentlessly towed along. Heero didn't answer, he didn't share Duo's obsession with fantasy books and he knew from past experience that if he let Duo in the door of that store, it would be hours before they emerged.  
  
"Duo, I said, 'Not now!' Dr. J is waiting for that information and your damn books will just have to wait!" Heero growled, as he tightened his grip on the other boy. He forged on ahead, walking rapidly. Duo struggled to keep up, a pained expression on his face.  
  
"Fine!" Duo huffed, "but at least let go of my hand!" Heero snorted, but released the hand he'd been holding. The two boys continued down the sidewalk in silence, pushing their way through the heavy weekend crowd. Heero stopped at a corner and checked the street sign. Looking over at Duo, he jerked his head to the right. Duo nodded. They extracted themselves from the main flow of the crowd and joined the trickle going their way.  
  
It was less noisy down the side street and Duo could see several buildings with bared fangs of busted glass, monsters ready to devour the unwary. On either side of the road, he could make out the dark squares of alley openings, he had counted four before Heero uttered a sound of satisfaction - target in sight.  
  
Duo wrapped his arms around himself and shuddered. The too familiar smells of spilt alcohol, urine and vomit, were wakening old terrors and he just wanted out of there. He was so wrapped up in his memories that he tripped on a piece of broken concrete and fell into Heero, who grabbed him.  
  
"Are you all right?" Heero asked, as he steadied his friend. "Fine." Duo answered, shaking his head to clear it. "I'll just be glad to get out of here. Why couldn't J have picked a better place to make the transfer?" he complained. Heero shrugged, " Didn't say."  
  
"That's J. Just a mine of information." Shinigami groused. "How much further?" Heero reviewed the map in his head. "Three doors down and on the left. Place doesn't have a sign, people just know its there."  
  
"Operates on the cheap." Duo commented, peering through the gloom, seeing if he could spot the door.  
  
"No." Heero said, as he checked for traffic and headed across the street. Duo followed. "Owner has some cops in his pocket. They run a lot of stuff out of here."  
  
"Other words, its a rough crowd."  
  
"Hai."  
  
Duo sighed and reached back to tuck his braid down the back of his shirt. In a place like this, anything could happen and he didn't want to give an opponent any kind of an advantage during a fight.  
  
Heero strolled up to a dilapidated building and mounted the front two chipped concrete steps leading to the door. He knocked on the door and a small panel slid open. Standing at the bottom of the steps, Duo didn't hear what was being said, but apparently Heero's answers satisfied the person on the other side of the door, because the panel closed, and the door opened. He quickly joined Heero and they entered.  
  
Shinigami looked around in surprise, the interior of the building was at odds with its exterior. The bar was neat, well lit and relatively clean. There were four booths along one wall, divided by a jukebox. In addition to the booths, a dozen small Formica tables with four chairs each were scattered around the small dance floor and stage. The dance floor was a dark color, black, brown or a dark green, he couldn't tell. Off to his left was a pool table, and two bikers were already playing. One seemed to be losing and he wasn't very happy about it. The two men had laid down their pool cues and were getting into each other's faces. Towards the back of the room, he spotted the bathroom and exit signs. Duo blinked his way out of his inspection, when Heero tapped him on the shoulder and indicated one of the booths. He nodded, and they crossed the floor to sit. A waitress appeared almost instantly.  
  
"Beer." Heero said. The woman nodded and headed for the bar. A moment later, she was back and placed two dark bottles and a couple of frosty mugs in front of them. Heero tossed a couple of bucks on her tray and she left. Duo reached out and grabbed a bottle, neatly twisted the cap and poured the fruity smelling brew out into his mug. He raised the mug to his lips and grimaced when he saw Heero mouth the words, "Nurse it." But, he obeyed and only took a sip of the brew.  
  
"Well?" Duo leaned in so there was less chance of being overheard. "Do we know what the informant looks like." Heero shook his head. "No. J says, that he's taken care of the arrangements, payment and the like. The guy is just gonna walk past our table, slip one of us an envelope and leave. We'll wait a few minutes, then leave heading in a different direction."  
  
"So, we just wait."  
  
"Hai."  
  
Fifteen minutes pass and Duo drained the last of his beer. Fishing around in his pockets, he came up with eight quarters and headed for the jukebox. Peering inside, he whistled happily, dropped in his quarters and made his selections. For the hand full of silver, he got "Kiss this', 'I wear your love.' by Lisa Angelle 'Lonely and gone' by Montgomery Gentry, and 'Take it like a man' by Suzy Bogguss.  
  
The opening bars of 'Kiss this' filled the air, as he murmured to the jukebox. "Wonder how much luck I'll have in getting Heero to dance." Turning from the jukebox, Duo frowned, Heero wasn't in the booth. He glanced around, before spotting Heero. 'Oh, there he is.' Duo headed towards Zero One, who was at the bar talking to the bartender.  
  
"Blaine! You son of a bitch!"  
  
"Now, Dusty! Keep your shirt on! It's just a game!"  
  
Duo ignored the two men, as he headed for Heero.  
  
"Dusty!"  
  
"Duo! Look out!" Heero shouted, as he pulled his gun and raced to Duo - too late. One of the bikers had grabbed Duo and used him for a shield by flinging the boy into the other man. Heero saw the flash of a blade as it disappeared into Duo's side, and he fired. The second biker had a strange look on his face as he crumpled to the floor, a bullet hole in his forehead. Heero went to his knees and pulled the blade from his friend's body.  
  
"Duo?" Heero begged for reassurance, as he rose to his feet, Shinigami's limp form in his arms. Chaos reigned behind him, people were fleeing in all directions, as he struggled to get Zero two outside. Once there, Heero took the steps in a single leap and disappeared into one of the alleys. The warm, sticky feel of Duo's blood running down his side, sent him sprinting towards the well-lit area he saw at the other end of the alley.  
  
The rest of his memories broke up into fragments. Wufei's arrives with a car to pick them up. Quatre's fussing over him, and weeping over Duo. Sally's loading Duo up with every antibiotic she could, while she tried to find out what had coated the blade, because Duo's wound hadn't been that serious - it had been deep, but not so deep that it had hit anything vital.  
  
Heero jerked out of his memories at a touch on his shoulder. Quatre's gentle eyes were glittering with worry as he stared into Heero's eyes.  
  
"It wasn't your fault, love." He whispered, as he leaned in and kissed Heero's cheek. Heero shook his head, and Q sighed. Sally was right. Heero was just going to have to work this one out on his own.  
  
"Alright, so we pack Dou in ice and keep him there. For how long?" Heero said, gazing intently at the Chinese pilot.  
  
"For as long as it takes. It will probably be several hours before we'll see any change." Wufei replied.  
  
"And what do we tell Sally, if she comes in and catches us." Trowa asked, his hand on his lover's shoulder. Wufei shrugged, " She's already as much as admitted that there is nothing more she can do for him. I don't see how she can object if we try this. Its not like we have a lot of options, here."  
  
"Let's just do it." Quatre whispered - teal eyes clouded with memory. "I don't want Duo's last thoughts of us, to be that we didn't love him. I want to be able to at least tell him that I do, and that I'm sorry I didn't tell him sooner." The little blonde's voice was heavy with suppressed sobs, as he turned to find comfort in Heero's arms.  
  
"So, do we all." Heero murmured into the top of Q's head, as rested his cheek on the soft strands. Wufei and Trowa nodded, their own hands seeking each other, before reaching out to the other two. The knot of worried lovers stood trying to provide each other with strength, when there was a knock on the door, and it opened.  
  
"We're ready." Rashid said, as he entered the room. 


	3. part three

Title: True Beauty, part three  
  
Author: Lady Snowblossom  
  
Pairings: 1+3, 4+5, various pairings eventually  
  
Category: Drama  
  
Rating: PG  
  
Warnings: Yaoi, Citrus, angst  
  
Archive: Yes, just ask. Email me at mlayfield@yahoo.com  
  
Notes: Will Wufei's treatment work? Stay tuned, kiddies.  
  
"Master Quatre," the big man continued, "I took the liberty of having one of the gurneys from the workroom brought up, and turned into a bed. We can transport Duo on it. It's right here, outside the door." Rashid looked over his shoulder, and nodded to someone unseen. "Akim and Abdul are here, as well to help wheel Duo to the master bath."  
  
"Thank you, Rashid." Quatre smiled, as he broke free of Heero's embrace. "Thank you for everything."  
  
The big man placed a large hand over his heart and bowed. "I pray Allah, that he will see fit to return Duo to you, Master." He said simply. Eyes brimming, Quatre bowed his thanks for that heart felt prayer. Behind him, the others bowed their heads in respect.  
  
Straightening, Rashid backed from the room, leaving the pilots to tend to the lost one among them. Trowa went to Duo's side and wrapped him in his blanket, but when he went to pick Shinigami up, Heero pushed him aside.  
  
"I'll do it."  
  
Tenderly, Heero slipped a hand under Duo's head and his other under his feather light knees, and gently lifted the sleeping boy in his arms. Heero's throat closed over, as he felt how sharp Duo's bones felt through the paper-like skin. Quilt stabbed him anew, and he almost stumbled, Wufei's hand was quickly there to steady him.  
  
"Are you alright?" a soft whisper reached his ears. Heero shook his head.  
  
"I'm fine."  
  
"Sure."  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Heero," the last dragon squeezed Wing's arm, "You are not alone, nor do you need to carry the burden of guilt you do. I have told you before, you could not have prevented what happened, so let it go. For your sake as well as his."  
  
Heero closed his eyes against the compassion in his friend's and occasional lover's voice. In a voice, raw with grief, Zero One whispered back his reply, "Not until he opens his eyes, smiles that beautiful smile of his and tells me he forgives me."  
  
Wufei nodded, tightened his fingers again briefly, then released Heero and fell back to join Trowa, who had been following the conversation, pity flaring briefly in his green eye. He hadn't really thought Wu would reach Heero, but he understood his need to try. They all had.  
  
Heero laid his precious burden down on the gurney and helped Abdul wrap the makeshift straps around Duo to prevent him from thrashing around and falling off. Satisfied that they were ready, the two older men grabbed the ends of the gurney and took off, the pilots following.  
  
The halls flashed past in their desperate race against time. Ever afterwards the journey would always be just a blurred memory for those who participated that fateful day.  
  
Outside the bathroom, the gurney squealed to a stop and Trowa leapt forward forestalling Heero this time, as he helped release Duo and took him into his arms. Quatre hurried to the door and threw it open. Beside the door, there were lined buckets full of small diamonds of ice, Rashid and several servants were waiting to pass the buckets into the room.  
  
The master bath was a room worthy of the name. The floor was tiled in red and white marble polished to a mirror finish. Two huge oak closets stood along one white painted wall. The sink was of white marble with gold taps, a huge mirror hung on the wall above it. The toilet was white and placed by the sink. But, the most dominating feature of the room was the huge sunken red marble tub. It would easily hold two people and was lined with an array of trays to hold towels, soaps, shampoos, anything a bather could desire.  
  
The majesties of the room were lost on the men, who crowded into its space.  
  
"We can't put Duo in that by himself, he'd drown in that monstrosity." Trowa, who had never before been in the room, said vehemently, staring down into the tub. "One of us is going to have get in and hold him, while . . ."  
  
"No, we won't." Quatre said, darting from the room. He was soon back with an armload of pillows, which he dumped into the tub. "Here arrange these, while I get more. They'll support him, while the ice does its job." The little Arab said, racing from the room, again. Eager hands soon had a makeshift bed arranged for Shinigami.  
  
Satisfied that all was in readiness, Quatre nodded to Trowa. "Put him in."  
  
Gently, Trowa placed his burden down onto the pile of multicolored cotton and stepped away. "All right, everyone, form a chain. Wufei, since you know what to do, you stay by the tub, the rest of us will hand you the buckets until you tell us to stop." Q ordered. Swiftly, everyone fell into place and Wufei was soon spreading the chips of ice over Duo's supine body.  
  
A soft gasp escaped Shinigami's lips, as the first pieces touched his uncovered arms and legs, but he offered no resistance and didn't open his eyes. Wufei kept the ice coming until the longhaired pilot was covered to his chin, then Shenlong held up his hand and said, "Enough." Everyone immediately halted. Rashid quietly gave orders for the empty buckets to be refilled, and that the full ones be returned to the freezer. They'd be called for, when they were needed.  
  
Inside the room, everyone settled to the floor to begin their vigil, Wufei had said, he didn't know how long, or if this would even work, but each was determined to see it thorough. For each, their heart demanded that they stay: that they give all they were, or would ever be to setting things right with Duo. This was their common goal and they'd breach Hell itself to see it done.  
  
Sally got out of her car and walked up to the front door of the mansion. She sighed, as she shifted the file under her arm. She really hated to do this, but they needed to know the results of her last test and she'd rather do it in person than coldly and impersonally by computer.  
  
There would be no more tests; there were no point to them. The infection had stopped, but they couldn't find the cause of the fever, so Duo's own body was killing him. At the outside, she was giving Duo maybe a week, if that long, so they'd have to prepare themselves.  
  
She knocked on the door, and a butler opened it and bowed her in.  
  
"Where is Quatre?" She asked.  
  
"In the master bath on the second floor, Doctor." The man replied.  
  
"Oh. Then can I see Heero?"  
  
"He's also in the master bath."  
  
"Trowa? Wufei?"  
  
"In the master bath."  
  
Sally frowned, all of them, in the same tub? What was going on around here?  
  
Before she could ask another question, Rashid came around the corner of the foyer. The tall warrior greeted her warmly.  
  
"Doctor, it is good to see you. The little master is in the master bath, if you wish to see him."  
  
Sally blushed. "Ah, no, Rashid, that's all right, I'll just go check on Duo." She began.  
  
"He's in the master bath."  
  
"WHAT?!?" She shouted, "Did his fever break? Why didn't someone tell me!"  
  
"No, Doctor, Duo's fever has not broken, but Wufei is trying to break it."  
  
"How?" Sally's voice was low and dangerous. If Wufei killed Duo playing doctor, she'd gut him, plain and simple.  
  
"He told me of a healer who broke a high fever with an ice bath. I doubled check that information with one of our doctors and gave orders for ice to be delivered. They have Duo packed in ice in the tub." Rashid said, quietly.  
  
"Damn!" Sally said, and then to herself, "It might work. Why didn't I think of that?" Looking up at the taller man, she requested, "Please take me to them."  
  
Bowing, Rashid led the way up the stairs to the second floor. The length of the hallway melted away under their footsteps. At the door, of the bath, Rashid knocked, pushed the door open and stood aside.  
  
Sally strode in, put her hands on her hips and barked, "WUFEI! Who the hell gave you a license to practice medicine?" 


	4. part four

Title: True Beauty, part four  
  
Author: Lady Snowblossom  
  
Rating: PG  
  
Pairing: 1+4, 3+5, others eventually  
  
Notes: Sally takes charge. I also want to extend my thanks to everyone, who has taken the time to review this little tale of mine. I'm really pleased that you all like it, hope you like this chapter as well.  
  
Disclaimer: See part one, because I'm too lazy to keep retyping it.  
  
Calmly, Wufei rose to face the angry woman.  
  
"Sally," he began quietly. "We had to do something. You told us yourself, when you ran that last test on Duo, that you weren't going to hold out much hope. So, that." He nodded toward the slush that Duo was floating in, "Is our last gasp chance at saving the boy we all love."  
  
Sally's expression of disapproval softened, "I understand. And its' about time." With that cryptic statement, she went past him to sit on the side of the tub, laying the file she'd been carrying on the floor at her feet. She reached into the water and pulled out one of Duo's limp wrists and felt for his pulse. .  
  
"How long has he been in the ice?" She said, releasing the pale wrist and laying it gently back into the slush.  
  
"Two hours, forty minutes." Heero answered, checking his watch. Sally pursed her lips, leaning over she reached to Duo's far side and pulled up his other arm and peered at it carefully, before laying it back down.  
  
"Trowa, hold his shoulders." She ordered, as she turned and reached down for one of Shinigami's legs. Trowa scooped his arms under Duo's shoulders and held him up, as Sally raised and examined each leg carefully. As she turned to face the silent group of youths, Quatre quickly handed her a towel to dry her hands on.  
  
"All right, here's the drill. Since I don't find any signs of hypothermia, I'll allow this treatment to continue." She held up a hand against the joyful smiles that crossed their faces. "But only on the following conditions.  
  
I will remain to check Duo periodically. If I decide that he is in danger from hypothermia, it stops and there will be no protests, or I'll have him removed from your care. Understood?"  
  
"Understood." Heero answered. He glanced at the others and they nodded. "Anything else?"  
  
"Yes." Sally said, as she once again stuck her hand into the water. "Ice is fine, but we need to drain off this water. Well, where is . . . Ah, found it!" She exclaimed, as she pulled the plug. The tub promptly started making the strangest slurping noises: like kids slurping pasta.  
  
Quatre gave his lover a quick hug, and murmured, "I'll go tell Rashid to send up more ice."  
  
"Hn."  
  
He turned to leave, but paused at the sound of Trowa's quiet voice.  
  
"Sally," Trowa said, staring at the neglected file, "Is that the results of Duo's test?"  
  
"Yes," she sighed, her expression sad. "I came here to tell you that officially there is nothing more I can do for Duo, except maybe give him something that will ease his pain." She looked down at the pale and drawn face of the lively Shinigami, and sighed again. "Boys, if this ice bath doesn't break Duo's fever, he has maybe a week, probably less, I'm sorry."  
  
Wufei blinked against the sudden filling of his eyes, it had been one thing to guess at the meanings of Sally's statements and explanations, and quite another to hear your greatest fear put so bluntly. Quatre turned and fled the room, his chest tightening with the pain squeezing his heart. Trowa and Heero stared at her, their minds rebelling against her words.  
  
Sally sighed, staring helplessly down at her hands; those hands that had healed, killed, soothed and comforted. Blinking back the blur that obscured her vision, Sally reached out to pull Duo's bangs from his face. She smiled sadly, when he sighed and turned his head in her direction.  
  
"Shinigami, don't you go off to your dark kingdom, do you hear me?" She leaned down and whispered into his ear. "We need you."  
  
Heero sat down in front of her and took her hand, she looked into his cobalt blue eyes and started at the shadows, she saw in their depths.  
  
"Don't be sorry, Sally. This is my fault and I'll bear the quilt forever. I should have moved faster." Heero said, looking away from her.  
  
Pursing her lips, she looked up at 'Fei and Trowa, who stood arm in arm, carefully watching them. "Still?" she mouthed. They nodded.  
  
"Maybe," She said slow and deadly, glaring at Wing's bowed head, "It would be better if Duo were to die."  
  
Heero whipped his head around, staring at her, his eyes widening. Wufei and Trowa gasped.  
  
"How . . . how can you say that!" Heero cried, surging to his feet and grabbing Sally's forearms in a bruising grip to haul her to hers.  
  
"Because then . . ." She paused, ignoring the pain in her arms, to glare at the boy holding her, "He won't have to spend the rest of his life listening to his best friend feel sorry for himself."  
  
The fury in her voice startled Heero, and the others. They had never heard Sally talk like that. Before anyone could say anything more, or move, a clatter out in the hall announced the arrival of the ice.  
  
"Heero," Sally's voice was a promise, "We will continue this conversation, later."  
  
Then the door opened and Quatre bounded in carrying two buckets. And everyone fell to.  
  
Six hours passed, as five mortal guardian angels waited for a sign from some celestial source that their hopes and prayers were going to be rewarded.  
  
Sally reached down and claimed Duo's arm to take his pulse. Her eyes went wide, and she had to check a second time to make sure of her findings. Under her trembling fingers was a weak, but steady beat. Shakily, she slid a thermometer between Duo's slack lips; before grabbing her stethoscope and putting it to the boy's chest.  
  
Their attention attracted by her actions, the Gundam pilots hovered behind her anxiously awaiting the results of her findings.  
  
Straightening and removing her stethoscope, Sally pulled the thin piece of glass from Duo's mouth and read it, and then she turned and smiled brightly with joy. Tears ran down her cheeks as she whispered.  
  
"The fever is broken."  
  
In an excess of feeling, Trowa scooped Wufei up and swung him around in a circle. Wufei laughed, for once not worrying about his dignity.  
  
"The fever is broken!" They shouted at each other.  
  
"Heero! Heero, did you hear that!" Quatre cried. The little blonde wheeled to find his lover kneeling on the floor-head bowed as if in prayer. He dropped to his knees and gently raised Heero's face; soft rosebud lips kissed away crystal tears.  
  
"We're going to be all right, now. Aren't we, love?" He whispered kissing Wing's lips.  
  
Heero smiled through his tears, forgetting for the moment, his need to hear Duo forgive him. "Hai." Then, he swept Quatre up in a fierce hug, and fell backwards against the wall, kissing his 'little one' deeply.  
  
Sally laughed in relief, watching Quatre and Heero; maybe she wouldn't have to have that conversation with the stubborn Heero Yuy, after all.  
  
Dismissing the antics going on, she reached down between Duo's ankles and pulled the plug. Slowly, Duo sank down on his leaky bed of pillows, as the water ran out. She looked up to find herself faced with four silly grinning boys and cocked her head at Quatre.  
  
"Would you please send for some dry clothes and a way to take Duo back to his room."  
  
Quatre scrambled free of Heero's arms and rushed to the door, flying through it. Seconds later, they could hear him shouting, "The fever is broken!" Obviously, someone had asked him about Duo.  
  
Sally snickered, her eyes dancing, "Lord, now he sounds like the town crier. I suppose he'll tell everyone, he runs into."  
  
"Most likely, ' Trowa answered, extending a hand to Wing. Heero grasped the long slender fingers and rose. Trowa kissed him gently; then slid an arm around the Japanese, who promptly leaned into the warmth of the European's body. Wufei was coming over to join them, when a husky moan jerked them all around.  
  
Sally jumped and slew around on the tub rim. Duo's teeth were chattering and his body was trying to warm itself by throwing the boy into violent shudders.  
  
"Towels, now!" She snapped, as she began to rip at the blanket covering Duo's form. Heero leapt at the cabinet containing the towels; pulled open the door, roughly yanked out a handful of the thick cotton and rushed to the tub.  
  
"Heero, give Trowa those towels and come and lift Duo, so I can get these pajamas off of him." Sally ordered, as she shoved the blanket down behind Duo. Trowa snatched the towels from Zero One. Carefully, Heero leaned down and lifted the body of his beloved friend. Sally worked Duo's pants down over his hips and off his legs. Finished, she nodded at Heero and working in concert, they got Duo's shirt off. Trowa handed over the towels and soon Duo was on the floor in Heero's arms, lying against his chest, a battered angel weary from the battle.  
  
"See if you can get him to react." Sally commanded softly, a hand resting gently on Duo's head.  
  
Wufei's eyebrows went up in puzzlement.  
  
"How?" Trowa demanded, his eyes drinking in the sight of the couple on the floor. His arms itched to hold Shinigami; hold on and never let go.  
  
"Call him. Hold his hand and call him. Maybe he'll open his eyes."  
  
Heero went first.  
  
"Koi, please open your eyes. Duo, you baka, open your eyes!" he begged, crushing the boy to his chest.  
  
Trowa swallowed the lump in his throat and opened his soul. "Duo! Come on, you're scaring us! Open your eyes!"  
  
"Duo! Wake up!" Wufei gruffly ordered.  
  
The words were barely out of his mouth, before Duo's eyes flew open, he raised his head from the cradle of Heero's chest, a clear expression of "Wha??" on his face, before his head sank wearily back against Wing's breast.  
  
Heero thought it was the most beautiful sight he had ever seen.  
  
. 


End file.
